WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER 3,374,995 VISITS IN ONE YEAR—65,000 VISITS A WEEK BY 985,281 VISITORS

Hits: 0

WPCNR THE DAILY BAILEY. News Comment by John F. Bailey. June 4, 2007: WHEW! This was a close one for the Common Council. They were really squirming. I love to watch politicians squirm, don’t you? But as so often happens they were saved in the nick of time of having to make a decision. 

Thanks to Reckson/SL Green, the Common Council has been given a golden opportunity to throw out the Exclusivity Agreement, last item on tonight’s Common Council agenda, that Louis Cappelli, the Super Developer, was trying to get them to award him to negotiate for the city-owned land around the train station to build Station Square.

Reckson/SL Green came out of nowhere by sending the Mayor and Common Council a letter by e-mail Friday, saying, they have a plan for the station. It’s like President Nixon saying in 1968, “I have a plan to end the (Vietnam) war,” remember that one? He ended it all right five years later.

Man, this opens up a can of worms.

The letter raises a lot of questions. Was the delivery of the letter to the city Friday, the first time the Mayor had heard of the Reckson interest?  An SL Green spokesperson said the Mayor was informed in a private meeting Thursday. 

 When did Reckson first approach the city about their interest, saying, “hey, hold on, we’re interested?” Did they phone the Mayor May 11? Did they phone Paul Wood just after May 10? Did they call the Councilmembers after May 10? How long has SL Green been discussing it? Reckson/SL Green has had 21 days to jump in the game.

If the Mayor was approached by Reckson/SL Green right after the Station Square Proposal was made public May 10, then why did the Mayor push the Exclusivity Agreement, with his name on it? If Reckson just decided to fire off a letter Friday without advance notice, as The Journal News reports, then the Mayor is in the clear. If Reckson had talked to the Mayor prior to May 24 when the matter came before the Council, and the Mayor did not reveal this, well, that’s showing bias towards the Cappelli proposal.

The last minute nature of this from Reckson – though they have known about the proposal since May 10, raises the remote possibility:  Did friends of the Common Council arrange to have the letter written giving them an excuse to kill the Exclusivity Agreement because they were taking such heat for it? Of course not, no way, right? Reckson/SL Green could not allow themselves to be used this way.

WPCNR has learned this letter was sent to Councilpersons by E-Mail on Friday, and an SL Green spokesperson believes his company told the Mayor in a private meeting of their feelings about developing the station Thursday, the day before.

But if Reckson/SL Green wanted to get in the game…why did they not say so May 23?

The very fact that Reckson/SL Green did not raise their protest publicly before the May 24 vote on the Exclusivity Agreement when the council mysteriously voted to table it, rather than kill it outright then, is mystifying.

If Reckson/SL Green, having been turned down once with a proposal for the station area on Bank Street, wanted to do something as soon as Louis Cappelli went public, why did they not say, “hey, wait a minute,” before the May 24 Common Council meeting, when the Exclusivity Agreement hung on Benjamin Boykin’s vote, according to our sources.

Did the Common Council know something was coming from Reckson, and that is why they tabled it?

When did the Common Council know, and  when did they know it?

Was this another setup?

A letter of convenience for the Common Council.

Nonetheless, the Council could not have been happier to get this letter. They are off the hook and can climb on their sanctimonious soapboxes and claim they listen to the public tonight.

Councilman Glen Hockley was thrown a lifeline by this letter. The man who loved this proposal May 10, now says, perhaps sensing and hearing drums in the jungle in the Southend of town, tells the press he doesn’t want to rush into exclusive agreements and is quoted as saying the only answer is competition.  Competition? In White Plains? What a concept!

What is Reckson proposing to bring to the table? That station area has been rotting and blighting the city for year. In fact, Reckson’s vision for the municipal parking lot on Bank Street when it sent out RFPs for that property last summer, was rejected by the city in favor of the LCOR affordable housing project. The city approved the LCOR vision for that site at their last Special Meeting in a bum’s rush.

Thanks, says the Common Council, We Needed That.

The Common Council has been thrown a lifeline, too, giving them the excuse to hold off on the Exclusivity Agreement or just say “no.” That buys them some a lot of credibility with the gullible public who want desperately to believe the council represents them in the worst way and are not just prevaricators, rubber stamps, and Six Blind Mice, and a member of the Cappelli Enterprises Board of Directors.

It’s amazing how the Council always manages to throw the people a bone of intelligence now and then. This may be one of those times again. Be sure and tune in for Common Council Theater tonight and rate the actors as they read their lines. The Common Council performances tonight will be more entrys in Hollywood’s Newest Awards Extravagance: “The Delfinos”. Members of the Council will be up for “Most Believable Performance by a Lying Official” this evening.

Last week, WPCNR was told of an unknown developer to the area interested in developing the site, in addition to Reckson. And over the weekend Reckson says they want to develop it. But, hey, where has Reckson been the last 7 years? Have they noticed the building boom? Glad they spotted it last week morning before it was too late. They develop one building, 360 Hamilton, and say they started the boom? Give me a break. Did they call the Mayor when they heard of this proposal? And when did they call him?

The 100 Story WPCNR WHITE PLAINS WORLD Building

Home of the Quarropas Moon Casino Hotel & CondoEstates World Terminal

But I have decided that it is time to announce my plans for the station area, too.

 I got together with the WPCNR Editorial Board and mega investors and they have said that we have to take a serious look at the site for a headquarters for WPCNR

Yes, the rumors are true!

The media empire of the CitizeNetReporter – is looking for a new headquarters for our growing media empire with 10,000 Daily Visitors to our website, has a proposal that we are working on with several world class architects and we are thinking about bringing in some major Las Vegas players and oriental investors into the mix, and I’ve told my people to call Disney’s people.

We should have a preliminary proposal in about a month with a posh downtown casino hotel and condominium convention center and sports complex called Quarropas Moon with an underground train station plus a 1,500 foot stylized 21^st Century landmark: The WPCNR WHITE PLAINS WORLD globe – based on the design of the classic Daily Planet Building,  topping the complex.

A one of a kind facility, unlike any other in the world, Quarropas Moon Casino Condo Hacienda & Officio will feature a sports arena sitting 20,000 for hockey, basketball, soccer, and softball and convention space. It will be WI-FI-ed, wired, YouTubed, Interneted.

 On an upper level, a state-of-communications meeting complex home to WPCNR, Aviation Monthly and SuburbanStreet.com and home to another worldwide news organization  with floors that rotate, showing residents and guests, different views of all the metropolitan area. The complex will soar 100 stories with a round crystal glass globe, recalling the Unisphere of the World’s Fair of 1964, and the classic Daily Planet Building. 

The tasteful blue mooted hue of the WPCNR WHITE PLAINS WORLD globe rotating nightly over the City Within a Park will have sex with the twin beacons of the Ritz-Carlton 50 stories below and to the East. The globe will also house the Quarropas Moon over Westchester World Class Gourmet Buffet a rotating restaurant unlike any in the world and White Plains will have it.  

The restaurant within it will be showcasing views of the tri-state On a clear day you can see New Rochelle and look down on the Ritz-Carlton 50 stories below.

There will not be four buildings but one everything building – true multi-use with 20% of offices leased as “affordable office space” and 30% of residences for “affordable housing,” in return for purchase of city land for $1. We’ll even tuck in City Hall, Glen.

And my renderings will show 44% Hispanic, 27% Black and 37% white people in the drawings, hopefully the drawing the enthusiastic endorsement of the Gannett Editorial Board.  After all any building has to be politically correct in the rendering before approval.

The White Plains Air Rights Exchange.

The complex will also be home to a new commodities exchange WPCNR has been approached to start: the White Plains Air Rights Exchange where air is bought and sold on speculation of future development of adjacent properties nationally and worldwide.

 And, did we forget to mention the concept of Showcase Retail: a Mall showcasing new retail ventures from around the world and a complete trading floor for the White Plains Air Rights Exchange: a new market trading in air rights worldwide, where investors can buy and trade air futures.

It’s ambitious. It is my vision and I believe in it. Financing details will come later. Just give me a week to line up my IDA and financing from my oriental and Canadian banks, and my unlimited letter of credit.

Please give me a coupla weeks and we’ll crank out the design for you, zoning kosher, too. I don’t want Reckson to squeeze me out.

Where does this leave the Super Developer?

In not a very good mood, because the Super Developer, the visionary and creator of Station Square predicted this is exactly what would happen if he was not granted the Exclusivity Agreement to negotiate with the city. On the other hand, he could offer to partner with Reckson/SL Green, let them do the office space and he will get the far more attractive Hotel-Condominium property anyway.

Or perhaps the city sells Reckson the City Hall/Municipal garage and they agree to build a City Hall.

We may need the White Plains Air Rights Exchange sooner than we think.

Hits: 0

WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL-CHRONICLE EXAMINER. June 4, 2007: Reckson/SL Green campaigned in the press today, urging the Common Council to deny Cappelli Enterprises the Exclusivity Agreement it seeks to develop the White Plains Train Station for Louis Cappelli’s Station Square project. The Journal News reported today it had received a letter Saturday from John Barnes of Reckson/SL Green, a Senior Vice President expressing the desire to develop its plan for the site.

The letter already has according to the Journal News turned Councilman Glen Hockley away from support for the Exclusivity Agreement. Hockley is reported by the paper as being in support now of competition, appearing to assure the dumping of the Exclusivity Agreement in some way, or more discussion. Ironically, the failure of the Common Council to vote the Exclusivity Agreement May 24 as Mr. Cappelli had expressed at the May 10 work session, has given developers a chance to jump on his idea for developing the station — even imitate it.

All members of the Common Council with the exception of Dennis Power, knew details of the plan from Mr. Cappelli for six weeks before May 24, but failed to move to approve the Exclusivity May 24 due to public pressure, when they had expressed no overdue concern on the project or the Exclusivity Agreement for five weeks.

The letter was sent exclusively to The Journal News. It also gives the Common Council reason to reject the Exclusivity Agreement and launch Requests for Proposals to develop the site. Cappelli had hoped to lease out the office components of his project in 2009. Sorting through Requests for Proposals should the city decide to go that route effectively kills this project timetable.

Hits: 0

WPCNR PRESS BOX. June 2, 2007: An hour of thunder and impressive cloud to ground lightning resulted in an hour and a half delay today at North Rockland High School, forcing postponement of the White Plains-Yorktown Class AA Section I Fastpitch Final Championship Game. The game will be played at 11:30 A.M. at North Rockland

Tigers in Action in last year’s Fastpitch Section I Final in North Rockland. Coach O’Donnell’s team is back in the Finals Again with another fantastic fastpitch finish.

That old Hudson River Bandit feeling. The former Bandit infield of Nikki Tamburri on the mound finishing off Tappan Zee in the 7th Saturday afternoon. Jill Gallagher at first and Heather Claussen at third lean in.

After resumption of their game with Tappan Zee, Hen Hud,  trailing 3-1; strung together 8 hits in the 4th inning to score 6 runs and defeat Tappan Zee for the Class A Section I Championship, 7-4. Jill Gallagher drove in the winning runs. Nicki Tamburri went all the way for the win, shutting Tappan Zee down from the 4th to the 7th.

In the stunning rally, Nikki Tamburri walked. Heather Claussen battling on a 1-2 count ripped a single up the middle to put runners and first and second. Meghan Kiernan singled to make it 3-2. Katie Joblon singled up the middle to tie it 3-3. After Nicole Martin struck out, Jill Gallagher blasted a scorcher again over the middle to put the Sailors ahead 4-3. Jackie Gallagher hit into a force at third for one out. Then came the hits that give you nightmares. Shannon Brown dunked into center and took second on the throw to the plate for a 5-3 lead. Kirby Wright tenth hitter up in the inning smacked a Baltimore Chop off the sunbaked infield that the shortstop could not handle, to make it 6-3. Nicki Tamburri did the exact same thing again chopping the ball high to the mound to get in the 7th run. It was a top to bottom team rally. In the fifth Jackie Gallagher with a TZ-er on at first and `1 out, cheating towards second backhanded a bullet at second, stepped on the bag and blazed a throw to first for a 6-6-3 DP.

Hen Hud — Class A Section I Champions.

It was the culmination of a team that had played together as the travel team, the Hudson River Bandits, six years ago and played with and against each other over years of travel fastpitch softball. It was good to see them together at the top. 

Hits: 0

WPCNR QUILL & EYESHADE. By John F. Bailey. June 1, 2007: A06069, The Bill that would establish a separate Commercial Assessment Ratio for commercial property in Westchester County awaits a greenlight from the New York State Senate, Assemblyman Bradley told WPCNR today.

“I’ll prioritize it, if Suzi (Openheimer, State Senator), tells me there’s a chance of moving it in the Senate,” Bradley told WPCNR.

“I have the power to bring it off the debate list in June, and bring it to a vote, if I think it has a chance of passing,” Bradley said.

The bill has been endorsed by the Westchester Municipal Officers Association, and the Westchester Assessors Association. As written, the bill establishes a separate commercial assessment ratio for commercial property in Westchester County, and only Westchester County.  The effect of the separate commercial assessment ratio would take the value of residential property out of the equalization rate that has lead to the rash of certiorari refunds that have cut the White Plains assessment roll from $450 Million in 1989 to $289 Million  in 2007, according to the White Plains City School District.

Including the residential property in the computation of the Equalization Rate lowers the rate at which commercial property is taxed resulting in certiorari suits that White Plains (and other county cities) has elected to settle over the years rather than fight the suits and pay costlier settlements if the city loses.

Assessors interviewed by WPCNR said the effect of a separate commercial assessment ratio would assesss commercial properties fairly and not artificially lower their value. If enacted one assessor, speaking on condition of anonymity said that it would slow the rate of ceritoraris in coming years, but result in request for reassessments, since cities do not automatically reassess as a result of a lowered valuation. This happens, the assessor said, in the present certiorari suits.

The assessor told WPCNR that eventually the loss in tax revenue from adjusted assessments would have to be made up by other revenue sources, as they are absorbed now by residential property owners, but at a slower rate, stabilizing the sharp rise in residential property owner taxes that have escalated due to the certiorari refunds in recent years.

This analysis would have the effect, it would seem,  of making Westchester County very attractive for developers to build in Westchester County or companies to move to Westchester and buy Westchester properties because of the “fairer” assessment their new buildings would receive in Westchester, rather than elsewhere. Given this explanation, while slowing certiorari suits, the bill would appear to create a property tax cut for commercial property owners as well as potentially more manageable tax increases for residential property owners, maybe.

Hits: 0

WPCNR THE DAILY BAILEY. News Comment By John F. Bailey. May 31, 2007: Deep Throats with liaisons with The Little Four: Councilpersons Benjamin Boykin, Rita Malmud, Dennis Power and Thomas Roach, tell The CitizeNetReporter that the Little Four  have a solidarity of 4 votes and will not approve the Super Developer’s Exclusivity Agreement, at Monday evening’s June Common Council meeting at least as written (and available for viewing on this website).  

Is that a setup to make the Little Four look good Monday night?

That’s pressure. If one of the Little Four switches – the Exclusivity Agreement passes. Who will be the weak link? Someone needs an excuse to wimp on the votedown and approve the agreement.

However, since the Little Four have not shown any stomach for voting down anything Louis Cappelli wants in the last seven years, I would be surprised if the Exclusivity Agreement were not altered in some way to give the Council the political face-saving it needs to avoid road-blocking a proposal that has obviously some hidden big time clout behind it.  I mean, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has not said, “Forget about it.” The County has not said “Hold on, Mr. C.” The State DOT has not said, “Louis Who?”

If I were Louis Cappelli,  I’d be directing his battery of Super Lawyers, Zoning Zenists, and Nuancing Negotiatiors, and Facilitating City Commissioners, and  the Conciliatory Counsel of the city legal department to draft language toning down the language in the Exclusivity Agreement that, in its present form, essentially commits the Council to the Station Square project big time, before the number of floors are even pegged. (That’s very important in analyzing a Cappelli Enterprises project.)

The agreement upon examination, is not just an agreement that allows the Super Developer to be sole negotiator with the city for the city-owned sites he proposes to build Station Square. It infers what some would interpret as a strong vote of confidence by the Common Council in the proposal that this is what they want.

The Council, when it accepts the agreement commits to “continuing” the negotiating Exclusivity conferred by the agreement after the developer furnishes a Redevelopment Plan, to wit, page 2,

“the exclusivity conferred upon Developer by this Agreement shall be continued and the Exclusivity Period shall be extended without need for any further or additional action by either the City, the Agency or Developer until the date on which the Common Council either endorses or rejects the Redevelopment Plan.” This, appears, in effect to prevent the city from seeking other proposals for the area until after it rejects finally the Cappelli Redevelopment Plan.

This is robbery of time.

The Agreement commits the city staff to working on the Redevelopment Plan, to wit, “make City and Agency staff reasonably available to meet and consult with Developer and its consultants at the City’s offices and at the Redevelopment Site, including, but not limited to, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, New York State Department of Transportation and County of Westchester.”  But, the city does this for most projects anyway, but this is a mammoth project, 5 buildings, a major highway out of the city. To make staff available free, is going to take a lot of time away from the staff’s other duties.

This Exclusivity Agreement goes far beyond giving Cappelli Enterprises exclusive negotiating rights. It appears to prohibit competitive proposals for the property being developed until the Council decides on whether or not to accept or deny the project.

Another thing this Exclusivity Agreement commits the Common Council to is a favorable attitude towards the project, to wit, Article II is even called “Endorsement of the Redevelopment Plan and Negotiation of Development Agreement.”  The language of the document says the Council endorses the plan, to wit, while acknowledging that approving the Exclusivity Agreement, “shall not constitute a final approval of the Proposed Project under the Zoning Ordinance or any State or local low, or a commitment by the Common Council to approve an Applications or the Proposed Project prior to the completion of review of the Proposed Project under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA).

Sounds great, right? “not constitute a final approval.” But then in the same paragraph the Exclusivity Agreement says this:

“Not withstanding the foregoing and any other provision of this Agreement, the Common Council and the (Urban Renewal) Agency acknowledge that the Proposed Project initially presented by Developer (on MAY 10) and which induced the City, the Agency and Developer to enter into this Agreement is a fundamentally sound concept for the redevelopment of the Redevelopment Site and an appropriate and acceptable basis and framework for the formulation of a Redvelopment Plan, and the Common Council and the Agency agree that they shall in good faith consider the Redevelopment Plan.”

That is a very strong paragraph. It could be construed to be a “pre-approval” before details have been worked out.  It could be saying, “We love this.” And the Council would if they eventually rejected it, by subject to who knows what.

However, whether or not the Exclusivity Agreement is revised to take out this strong endorsement language, it has served its purpose.

Cappelli Enterprises has marked its territory, the moribund Railroad Station area is their baby and other developers should be beware.

With Councilmen Boykin, Malmud, Roach and Power under pressure from Robert Stackpole, Robert Levine and Marc Pollitzer, announced candidates for Common Council, it would be a self-serving, political manipulation to vote down the Exclusivity Agreement as evidence to hold up to Stackpole, Levine and Pollitzer that they are strong and not just “stampheads” for Mayor Delfino.

However, the Council’s silence on the whole Station Square project  when they have known about it for a month when they had no problem with granting exclusivity to negotiate, shows a lack of sophistication and awareness, at best – and a contempt for the community.

Why wouldn’t the Common Council President say – “Hold everything. This is so big that I am calling for the Mayor to throw this open for Requests for Proposals.”

The Common Council President could have done that.  Drawing a line at voting an Exclusivity agreement is a token gesture at best simply because the Council was playing politics and going along with the Administration request to keep Station Square quiet until the proper time.

But why keep it quiet? That is the question here.

Nonethe less, the Big Dog Wants the Puppy Developers To Stay on the Porch.

The crafty device of the Exclusivity Agreement puts competitors for White Plains prime real estate on notice that this is Cappelli Country, whether or not the Council approves the agreement or not or even a sanitized version of it.

It is a master stroke by the Chessmaster who, as one sage news commentator has said privately is always six moves ahead of everybody else on the White Plains chess board.

Perhaps even now, the Common Council is writing their speeches saying why they will approve a watered-down Exclusivity Agreement. Or, since the Cappelli-ests have already announced their intentions on the property – the work of the Exclusivity Agreement has been done. As long as he gets his Exclusivity even if he takes out the “endorsement” language, he has shut out the competition.

He’s also flush with $30 Million in cash from his sale of voting control of City Center to Entertainment Properties Trust. So far Cappelli Enterprises has not responded to WPCNR requests for why they sold voting control of City Center policies to their New Roc partner.

Or, perhaps the councilpersons are working on their speeches saying why they will not grant Exclusivity.

And as they read those self-righteous speeches Monday evening, White Plains citizens have to read between the lines, that until the duplicity of pre-knowledge of the council was revealed by this reporter last week, nobody cared. The council would have been coming at the Exclusivity Agreement cold in the public’s opinion.

But they knew about Exclusivity a month ago. They never raised objections. They should have killed it right when they first heard it. One more instance of not putting the land out for bid. Requests for Proposals or whatever.

On the political front, if I were challenging for Council seats of Dennis Power and Benjamin Boykin, and the anointed newcomer Milagros Luocona, I would forget about putting out position papers as opposition has announced. Nobody will read them. Messrs Stackpole, Pollitzer and Levine should have been pounding this coverup issue all week – somehow. It was a golden opportunity to pound them.

Tonight, Battle Hill Association hears Council President Rita Malmud speak. That should be interesting. They should ask her specifically why she did not make this public when she first heard of it – if she was told not to and why?  Doesn’t anybody on the Common Council remember?

And, I’m sorry but the biggest issue on this Station Square is not how many minority persons are featured in the renderings, for crying out loud. Wake up you editorial boards out there? How dumb is that certain editorial board that wasted ink on that? How about the traffic increase of 15,000 people daily into those office and hotel buildings? How about how will all those cars exit only into Tarrytown Road?  Bill Belosi, we will need you!

How about how this works with the light rail link across county? How about who is going to pay for it?

You cannot make this stuff up.